


It's Not Easy Being Green

by celedan



Category: Torchwood
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Decorations, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Special, Domestic, Funny, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-14
Updated: 2019-12-14
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:02:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,173
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21795005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/celedan/pseuds/celedan
Summary: Jack wakes up on Christmas Day with green hair! While Ianto thinks it's funny, Jack despairs, and drags his lover into the Hub so that Tosh may sort out this mess.
Relationships: Jack Harkness/Ianto Jones
Comments: 6
Kudos: 39





	It's Not Easy Being Green

**Author's Note:**

> Originally, I wanted to post this at Christmas, but it's finished already, so what. I have another Christmas story in the making, and I hope that it will be finished for Christmas day. We'll see.

Ianto paused, his hands coming to a stop on the cutting board, the potatoe he had been slicing forgotten for a moment. A sudden wave of... warmth and contentedness overcame him, and when he heard a cheering Christmas melody being whistled in the living room, he finally realised that this was real. It was Christmas, and Jack was here with him in his flat. And if they were really lucky, he would stay for the duration of the holidays.

Because the team had made both of them a rare, precious gift: The chance to spend Christmas together. And no matter what happened, save for the impending end of the world, they weren't allowed to set foot into the Hub during the Christmas days.

Both had protested, of course, but the other three, even a cantankerous Owen, had teamed up against them, and had proven that they could be equally as stubborn – had out-stubborned them, in fact. And to be honest... Ianto's protests hadn't been that vehement since, deep down, he would have loved nothing more than to spend Christmas with Jack. Surprisingly, the Captain had relented pretty quickly as well. And that was why they found themselves here now, together, on the eve before Christmas, preparing for the feast tomorrow like normal people; Ianto was dishing up parts of their dinner for tomorrow as well as throwing something together for tonight, and Jack was wrestling with the Christmas tree in the living room. A Christmas Tree! Here in Ianto's living room! And with Jack decorating it! This was so normal that it was surreal.

Sudden cursing – some of it not even in any Earth language Ianto knew – brought him out of his musings. Fearing the worst, horror-scenarios flitting before his inner eye from Jack being buried under the collapsed Christmas tree, fir needles littering the whole floor, to a tree actually on fire.

Rushing into the living room, he couldn't spot anything out of the ordinary at first.

“Jack?” he called cautiously since he couldn't see Jack who stood behind the tree. “You okay?”

“Yeah, I'm fine,” came the grumpy answer, and finally, Jack emerged from behind the tree. He was rubbing his right hand, a petulant pout on his face, and his hair stood on end a bit. “These damn fairy lights electrocuted me.”

Concerned at once, although he knew of course that nothing could harm Jack permanently, Ianto advanced on him, and took his hand into his. He flinched when a weak electric shock hit him when he touched Jack. Frowning, he looked at Jack's hand. The skin seemed a bit red, but thankfully not burned. He looked Jack in the eye scrutinisingly, but saw no pain in the clear blue orbs. Absentmindedly, he reached up to tame Jack's hair a bit before his gaze fell onto the fairy lights burning merrily between the dark green of the tree. He frowned. At least the thing hadn't caused a blackout in the whole house. But...

“Where did you get them anyway?” he asked, and looked back at Jack. He couldn't remember owning something like that. 

The Captain shrugged. “Found them.”

Frowning harder, Ianto sensed impending doom, but since everything, including Jack, seemed to be fine, he quickly let it go. He clasped Jack's hand firmly instead.

“Come on. You can help me with dinner.”

Jack's face brightened at the prospect, and he eagerly followed Ianto into the kitchen. “Can we bake cookies as well?”

Ianto had to suppress a fond smile when he heard the childlike eagerness in the immortal's voice, but nodded. “If you like.”

Jack actually giggled, and boisterously wrapped his arms around Ianto from behind, almost toppling them both to the floor. “That will be fabulous!”

It was after midnight when the two men fell into bed, and only after Ianto's kitchen was spotless again – Jack Harkness let lose in his kitchen, getting his hands on cookie dough, was  _not_ a good idea. The innocent act of baking cookies was now forever tainted for Ianto... not that he complained; once more, Jack had shown him his innovative side...

A small, happy smile automatically played around Ianto's mouth as he fell asleep in Jack's arms, snuggled under the blankets.

Ianto was wrapped in a warm cocoon consisting of warm blankets and Jack's even warmer embrace. His lover's scent, enticing and familiar, enveloped him as well, and Ianto felt utterly safe and at peace.

He grumbled slightly only half-awake when Jack suddenly extracted himself from their comfy nest. Cool air briefly hit Ianto's sleep-warmed skin, and he curled up into a tight ball.

Deeply breathing in Jack's scent, he slumped into the matress bonelessly, prepared to fall asleep again, when a high-pitched scream pierced his ears.

Ianto bolted upright. His heart beating wildly, hectic eyes searched his surroundings trying to locate the person in need. Until he realised that none other than Jack Harkness himself had let out this girly screech  – which the Captain would probably deny adamantly.

Since that fact didn't lessen Ianto's worry at all, he scrambled from the bed, dragging the blanket with him onto the floor in his hasty attempt to get to Jack as quick as possible, and almost stumbling over the tangled fabric.

Ianto came to a scattering halt in the bathroom door.

His eyes widened comically in shock when he spied Jack in front of the bathroom mirror, staring at his reflection in horror.

The Captain turned to Ianto when he noticed the younger man's presence. His blue eyes were as wide as Ianto's, and shock was clearly written all over his handsome features.

“Ianto! Look at me!”

Ianto gulped, and scrutinised his lover. “Yes,” he said carefully. “I see.”

Letting out a theatrical, pitiful whine, Jack turned back to the mirror, and pulled at his forest green hair.

“I'm disfigured!” he cried, and stared intently at his hair some more to properly wallow in his misery.

Ianto, who had overcome his first shock, cocked an eyebrow, hardly impressed. Actually, since he had seen for himself that Jack wasn't in any grave danger, and that he hadn't come to any harm (save for his pride and vanity maybe), Ianto gradually felt giggles bubbling up inside him. Only years of practise in mastering a perfect pokerface prevented him from letting his amusement show.

But pokerface or not, obviously, Jack knew him too well by now to know that he was hiding something behind the bland mask.

“Don't laugh!” the Captain hissed bitchily, and threw Ianto a nasty glare from the corner of his eye.

The corners of his mouth actually twitching for a split-second, Ianto quickly schooled his features, and cleared his throat.

But then, his gaze accidently travelled down Jack's body, and he burst out in a sudden, choked laugh as he realised that not only the hair on Jack's head had miracolously turned green over night.

Jack had noticed his gaze, and looked quickly down as well before he glared at Ianto once more, a pout forming on his mouth. “I hate you,” he declared childishly. “You wallow in my misery.”

“I would never do that,” Ianto assured, but couldn't hold back a chuckle. Everybody thought, given Ianto's preference for fancy suits, that he was the vain one in this relationship. But Captain Jack Harkness, who had the fashion sense of an eccentric ageing queen, was incredibly vain. Ianto would have probably dealt better with the current situation than Jack if he had been in his place.

And he realised one more thing: green wasn't really Jack's colour. At least not on his head.

Taking in a deep breath to get his bearings again  – a sulking Jack wouldn't be helpful after all –, Ianto slowly advanced on his lover. 

“Come on,” he tried to reason with the unhappy immortal. “I'm sure you met lots of beings all over the galaxies that sported unusual hair colours.”

“Yes,” Jack had to admit. “But that was them, and they were gorgeous, but not me!” He tore at his hair again. “I like how I looked just fine.”

He threw another glare at his reflection.

“I will shave them off!” he declared. “All of them.” 

Ianto felt his heart miss a beat.

“The hell you will!” he protested firmly, glaring at Jack.

“But I can't go outside like this!” Jack threw him an exasperated, reproachful look. 

“Then we'll stay here for now until we have found a solution,” Ianto stated pragmatically. Then, he frowned. “How did this happen anyway?”

“How should I know!?” Jack cried, and raised his hands defensively. “I didn't do anything. We were together the whole time. You know I didn't do anything. And after all, we're not in the Hub, so what could I...” 

Jack trailed off suddenly, and his eyes went wide suddenly.

At the same time, an ominious thought came to Ianto. “Jack... where exactly did you find the fairy lights?” Ianto asked suspiciously.

The Captain froze, caught out, and turned his wide eyes on him a little sheepishly. “Ehm...” He fidgeted. “In the Archives?”

Ianto threw up his hands in the air with exasperation. “Jack!” he exclaimed long-sufferingly, not knowing if he should be amused since nothing grave had happened after all, or hit Jack. As an alternative, he stemmed his hands into his hips, and glared sternly at Jack which he could pull off very well even if he was completely naked. “I remember some rule of yours that nothing alien ever leaves the Hub.” He cocked an eyebrow once more.

“Oh come on!” Jack cried, and stormed past Ianto back into the bedroom. “As your boss, I expect you to do as I say, not as I do.” Jack started pacing up and down in front of the bed so that Ianto was distracted by rippling and flexing muscles for a second. 

“And by the way,” Jack continued, undeterred, “'S not as if we hadn't made use of one or the other alien device ourself.”

Ianto cringed since Jack had a point there. “But never outside the Hub,” he grumbled because he felt the need to have the last word.

“It's bloody fairy lights,” Jack still went on without heeding Ianto's interjection. “How dangerous could they be.”

Ianto shrugged, a sarcastic twitch playing around his lips. “They're not dangerous, no,” he admitted smugly.

Jack threw him a nasty glare.

Purposefully, Ianto marched toward his wardrobe and dresser, and started pulling out clothes. “But since your predicament is job related, we have to go into the Hub.”

Jack nodded eagerly with a relieved expression in his eyes. Then, he frowned. “I can't go outside like this,” he repeated.

“Stop whining,” Ianto admonished, and threw some clothes in Jack's direction which the Captain caught with a pout on his mouth. 

They got dressed silently, but when, eventually, Ianto threw him the last item of clothing, Jack let out an offended gasp. He stared at the plain, black woollen hat as if it was contageous.

He threw Ianto a dark look as he held the hat away from his person with two fingers.

Ianto once more stemmed his hands into his hips, slightly offended himself for the sake of his hat. “It's either that or you go outside looking like the Grinch's handsome cousin.”

Not even feeling up to a suggestive remark to that, Jack grumbled.

If the whole situation hadn't been aso funny, Ianto would have felt sorry for Jack. But since he had way too much fun  – without showing it, of course –, and since it was Jack's own fault that he looked like that now, his pity was limited.

Under normal circumstances, Jack saw traffic laws as a mere suggestion, but today, he outdid himself. Normally able to take a lot, Ianto felt slightly queasy when Jack finally parked the SUV with screeching tires in their underground garage – proof of how desperate the Captain was. 

Snatching up the Tupperware-contained fairy lights, Ia nto hurried after Jack.

“Why am I sacrifising my chance to pick up some willing bird who wants to get a little festive with me when you two dorks come into work anyway?!” Owen's heartwarming words greeted them. “Have you shagged too much to the point of boredom or did you realise normal couple-y happy bliss isn't your cup of tea?”

“Owen, shut up,” Jack seethed which alerted Tosh immediately. 

Jack snatched the Tupperware box from Ianto's unresisting hands, and almost threw it in Tosh's arm. “Do something,” he demanded desperately. “Help me!”

Tosh cocked an eyebrow, her worry decreasing since she noticed Jack's desperation, but also his uncharacteristc theatrical behaviour. “What happened?” She peered into the box. “Are these... fairy lights?! And why are you wearing a hat?”

“Yeah,” Owen snorted. “Normally, you'd rather risk your ears freezing off than be caught wearing a hat, vain bastard that you are.”

Before Jack could react in any way to his team's questions, Ianto pulled the hat from Jack's head. The Captain flinched, and tried to grab it back, but he was too slow.

Tosh and Owen stared at him for a couple of seconds, eery silence echoeing through the Hub before the Torchwood agents burst out into laughter. Tosh tried to rein herself in after a few seconds just to be polite, but Owen laughed to his heart's content. It had been a long time since he'd laughed this heartily.

“Okay, very funny, now calm down,” Jack snapped petulantly, tightly crossing his arms across his chest defensively. 

“You don't wanna tell me that that,” – Owen pointed at Jack's hair while trying to catch his breath, “has something to do with that?” He next pointed to the fairy lights.

“They're alien.” Ianto stepped forward, taking over the explanation. “Our brave and wise leader thought it a good idea to hang them into my Christmas Tree.” 

“It's our tree,” Jack grumbled petulantly. 

“Then, when he was decorating _our_ tree,” Ianto continued without batting an eye, “the fairy lights electrocuted him. And voilà, this morning, he looks like that.”

Tosh frowned, clutching the box tighter which clearly showed her colleagues that she was already miles ahead in her thinking.

“I'll figure it out, Jack,” she tried to comfort the distraught Captain.

Jack threw her a grateful smile.

Tosh smiled back for a moment.

“Now, Tosh!”

While Tosh took a closer look at the fairy lights in the hope to figure them out, Ianto went down into the Archives to try to retrace where Jack had found the fairy lights (he couldn't remember, of course), and then find something in their databanks about this unusual device.

He wasn't long at it (and hadn't found anything yet) when a curt call from Tosh over his comms summoned him up again.

Wondering why she sounded as if she was only barely holding herself in check, Ianto hurried upstairs with a sense of foreboding.

“Get him out of my hair!” she snapped in clipped tones, and pointed at Jack who had backed up a bit confronted with her ire. “Or else, I'll shoot him, I swear.”

“Ehm...” Ianto looked from one to the other questioningly.

“He hovers over my shoulder like a vulture, I can't concentrate this way.”

Ianto understood her perfectly. He couldn't concentrate either when Jack hovered like that.

Jack simply shrugged innocently, not seeming aware of any wrong he had done.

Biting his lip in thought, Ianto briefly contemplated taking Jack down into the Archives with him. But since he wouldn't get any research done with Jack present, and since it was bloody Christmas, dammit, he wanted to get out of here, and bloody  _do_ something Christmas-y!

Not thinking long about it, he snatched up the hat that he had thrown carelessly onto Gwen's deserted workstation, and unceremoniusly pulled it onto Jack's head.

“We're going out,” he declared, and with that, dragged a protesting Jack out of the Hub into the crisp December air. 

Jack calmed down on their way, only giving the occasional grumble that more amused Ianto than aggrivate him. 

He put up a fight again though when he realised where they were headed. He'd thought they would take a little stroll in a deserted part of Mermaid Quay, but not...

“The Christmas market!?”

Horrified, he stared at the throngs of people strolling merrily between the colourful booths. 

“I look ridiculous. I can't face that many people.”

Resolutely and bravely, Ianto grasped Jack's hand, pulling him forward with determination. “They're strangers. They don't care what you look like.”

“But I do,” Jack protested. “I should have worn my RAF uniform hat at least.”

“No. You look eccentric enough. This is less conspicuous.”

“And less dignified,” Jack grumbled, but obediently followed Ianto into the crowd.

Even if he didn't want to admit it, Jack had a great time on the Christmas market with Ianto, strolling between the booths, and loking at all the kitschy or enchanting or delicious things offered there. He even forgot about his green hair since his sole attention was split between all the wonders to be seen and the warmth of Ianto's hand in his. He didn't mind at all that they appeared as a couple to other people's eyes, and Ianto didn't seem to mind either. A strange warmth spread through his whole body which had nothing to do with the hot chocolate they had drunk or the packet of still warm roasted almonds they had shared.

After a little while, the two men slowly headed back to Torchwood, both of them clearly reluctant to have to end the moment of normalcy they had managed to steal. But since they had faith in Tosh's abilities, they would very soon be able to return into Ianto's flat for their interrupted Christmas. 

Armed with small presents for Tosh and even Owen, and after having bought real fairy lights – made on Earth –, they returned to the Hub. 

Ianto immediately noticed how irritated Tosh was by their return, so apparently, she didn't seem to have come any farther with figuring out a solution to Jack's problem. Obviously, she feared a renewed disturbance now that Jack was back... probably rightly so.

Because, indeed, as soon as they had set foot into the Hub, Jack made a beeline for Tosh's workstation.

But Ianto was faster. Placing their purchases onto the nearest flat surface, he quickly intercepted Jack. He stepped well into Jack's personal space, and placed a hand onto Jack's chest. 

“I'm heeding for a shower to warm up again,” Ianto stated, cocking a suggestive eyebrow. “I'd hoped that you would join me.” 

Jack craned his neck for a moment to look into Tosh's direction longingly, but then, he seemed to comprehend what Ianto had actually said. A slow, hopeful grin crept onto his face, brightening it, and he nodded eagerly. He was so distracted by now that he didn't even recognise Ianto's uncharacteristic public behaviour of affection as the ploy it was. 

Relieved, Ianto led him downstairs into Jack's bathroom. 

Clothes quickly flew left and right, and Ianto hurried under the warm water since he was cold for real.

He spun around the moment pleasantly hot water rained down on him to pull Jack into his arms, but he jumped, taken-aback, when he faced his lover.

“You seriously don't plan to leave that on?” Ianto chuckled disbelievingly, and was sorely tempted to slap Jack. His hands instinctively reached up to pull the ridiculous hat off, but Jack batted his hand away.

“Shut up, and kiss me,” Jack bristled, and dove in to claim Ianto's lips in a forceful kiss. 

The steaming kiss distracted Ianto for a moment, and he completely surrendered to Jack, enjoying the wet, hard body pressed against his own, a slick tongue battling with his own for dominance, and strong, questing hands gliding over his body seemingly everywhere all at once. 

He eagerly wrapped one leg around Jack's hip when his lover guided the limb up, and they both moaned into each other's mouths when hard flesh met hard flesh. 

With a last, gentle nip, Jack pulled back, ready to claim his lover. Ianto was eager to lose himself in Jack's touch, but in that moment, he caught sight of the hat still firmly in place on Jack's head, the wool sodden wet by now. For a moment, he was frozen to the spot, but then, hysterical laughter burst out of him. His leg slipped from Jack's grip so that he stood firm once more on the slippery ground of the shower. He doubled over, and held his aching stomach while he tried to get in enough air into his lungs between laughing.

“Y-you... look so... ridiculous,” he wheezed.

When he chanced a glance up, he met Jack's petulant, insulted gaze, and he tried to get his bearings again. A bit.

Growling, Jack ripped the hat off, and dropped the sodden wool into the shower tray where it landed with a heavy, wet plop. He glared at Ianto.

The sight of Jack's green hair wasn't any better though, and Ianto once more broke out into snickers. 

Huffing, Jack had had enough, and firmly turned his lover around, pressing him bodily into the shower wall.

The coolness of the tiles shocked Ianto back into the here and now, so that he calmed down abruptly. His weakening giggles turned into moans as Jack pressed himself flush against his back, his hard length rubbing between his buttocks.

“I'll teach you to laugh at your Captain,” Jack growled, and nipped the soft skin of Ianto's shoulder with the intent to leave a punishing mark. 

Eagerly, Ianto pushed back, hoping for more. “I'm sorry,” he panted, but both heard the mischief in his voice. “I'll never do it again... provided you behave in the future, and never touch the things in my Archives again.”

“Hmm, possessive, are we,” Jack growled into Ianto's ear, and firmly rubbed his cock harder into the crease of Ianto's behind. “And behave? Never!” 

And with that, Jack gripped his cock tightly, and started sliding into his lover inch by punishing inch.

Ianto moaned loudly, the sound echoeing from the tiled walls surounding them, and he tried to relax completely as Jack sheathed himself without preparation. 

Finally, his lover had bottomed out, and the two men stayed poised like that for a long moment, adjusting and enjoying the intimate closeness.

Trying to find purchase on the slippery tiles, Ianto pushed back roughly, and clenched around Jack demandingly. “Move, dammit!” he growled, and Jack's insolent chuckle behind him infuriated him all the more.

“I thought you wanted me to behave,” Jack teased, and at the same time teased his lover with a sharp, quick thrust that let him slide in even more deeply.

“Never!” Ianto snarled, and forcefully pushed back again. 

Laughing, his good mood restored, Jack curled his fingers around Ianto's hips firmly, and started a firm, deep rhythm of taking his lover.

It was with a sense of satisfaction and ease surrounding them that they emerged from Jack's office some time later. 

Ignoring Owen's epic eye roll, they headed straight for Tosh who, by now, seemed a bit more relaxed.

“Good news,” she declared. “I think I figured it out.”

“You are the best!” Jack crowed, and leaned down to press a firm kiss to her cheek which made her smile. 

“Your intergalactic fairy lights really just short-circuited,” she explained, all business again in the next second already. “They're actually supposed to change their own colour, not somebody's hair.”

“Do we still have the receipt,” Jack joked grumpily, and crossed his arms in front of his chest to stop his hands from automatically reaching up again to finger his hair. As the thing had malfunctioned, then surely there was no chance of turning his hair back to its original colour. Would he have to dye it now? For all eternity?

As if reading Jack's thoughts since he had turned slightly pale at the prospect, Tosh hurried to assure her boss. “I think I can reverse the effect.”

“Really?” Jack's face brightened abruptly.

“Yes.” She nodded. “If I can repeat the short circuit in a controlled way, I think that should turn your hair back to its proper colour.”

“Great. Let's do it.” Eagerly, Jack clapped his hands, even if he wasn't so eager to get short-circuited again. 

“Do you think it worked?”

For the umpteenth time, Jack fingered his fringe, pulling the still green strands down to look cross-eyed at them. 

“Stop it,” Ianto admonished gently, and pushed Jack's hand down again towards his dinner. 

Smiling sheepishly in apology, Jack indeed turned his attention back to their Christmas dinner. 

For a few more moments, the two men basked in a comfortable silence when eventually, Jack put his cutlery down again. He looked at Ianto intently. “Green hair or not,” he said, “I'm very happy to be here, celebrating Christmas with you.”

Ianto couldn't help but beam at Jack, his whole body radiating happiness. “Me too,” he said softly before turning back to his dinner. They lapsed into an intimate silence again, but additionally, Jack had straightened out his legs to hook his feet around Ianto's ankles as if in embrace.

“Let's watch a movie, yes?” Jack asked after dinner was over and the kitchen tidied up. 

“Okay. You chose, and I'll bring our dessert,” Ianto agreed, and turned to the fridge. 

When he came into the living room, the DVD menu of  _ Alien _ was playing. He chuckled, but didn't say anything. Instead, he handed Jack his plate of decadent chocolate cake, and decided to indulge his lover who viewed most science fiction movies as comedy since some of them were so far from the truth that it made Jack laugh every time. Ianto loved those moments; when they would curl up on the couch together to watch a movie. He never paid much attention to the happenings on screen but was rather focussed on Jack's voice, laughing carefree and heartily, sometimes so hard that tears were running down his face. And when he had calmed down again, very softly, as if it was their secret, he would tell Ianto what had been so funny, and what the real thing was like, travelling through space, and encountering all the wonders life had to offer. 

This night was the same. Feeding each other chocolate cake like in a clichéd romance flick until they came upon a scene where Jack started laughing again so hard that Ianto had to safe his plate from tumbling from Jack's grip. 

He wouldn't swap this night for anything in the world.

“Merry Christmas, Jack,” he whispered.

“Merry Christmas, Ianto,” Jack answered softly, and pressed a gentle kiss against Ianto's temple while his eyes were glued to the screen. 

Jack woke to the pleasant sensation of sensual, loving kisses being pressed to his naked shoulder, then his neck, jaw, and finally his lips. He moaned softly into Ianto's mouth, and shifted around until he could pull his lover on top of him.

Kissing thoroughly for a while, Ianto eventually pulled back with a soft plop.

“You know what?” he mumbled against Jack's lips.

“Hmm, what?”

“I really like brunettes the best, I realised.”

Jack needed a moment to untangle the meaning of Ianto's words, but then, he froze. Startled, he pulled back to look at his lover with wide eyes. “You mean...”

“Yep.” Ianto grinned at him.

Unceremoniusly, Jack rolled his lover off of him, earning hinself a surprised “Oomph” from the younger man as he landed on the mattress with a slight bounce. 

Eagerly, Jack lifted the blanket to take a peek underneath. He grinned madly at Ianto when he let go of the blanket again. “Ev'rything as it should be.”

Like a whirlwind, he dashed from the bed and into the bathroom from where, after a few seconds, Ianto could hear a triumphant noise. 

Ianto grinned, and stretched his body contentedly like a big cat.

After a few minutes – during which Jack had undoubtedly appreciated his restored beauty in the mirror, the vain bastard –, he returned into the bedroom. Leaning in the doorway, he met Ianto's eyes a little more serious again.

The younger man propped hinself onto his elbow in his warm nest of blankets, and admired the view unashamedly presented to him. 

“I don't want you to think that my frantic mood was only caused by my vanity,” Jack explained calmly, and pushed himself away from the doorway to cross the distance to the bed. “I don't want you to think the worst of me.”

He chuckled ruefully as he squatted down next to the bed so that he was at eye level with Ianto. 

The younger man returned his gaze calmly, but nonetheless wondered where Jack was going with this. He was surprised when the immortal reached for Ianto's hand to press a gentle kiss to his knuckles.

“I was afraid my little accident spoilt my present for you.”

“But we agreed no presents.” Ianto frowned.

“I know, I know,” Jack said hastily, and started toying with Ianto's fingers in a clearly nervous fashion. “Then see it as a token of appreciation for your good work.”

Ianto chuckled at that. “Okay, I can do that. So... what's that token of appreciation supposed to look like?”

The quick, beaming smile Jack threw him took Ianto's breath away for a second. “I want you to get all dressed up. I'll do, too, and then we're expected for a late lunch at... hm, you will find out.”

Ianto shivered delightfully at the unexpected prospect of Jack actually dressing up (which hopefully didn't mean the Captain donned a waistcoat over his normal attire; Ianto would love to see him in something more formal for once). At the same time, his thoughts started racing as he contemplated which suit would be appropriate for himself for Jack's mysterious – and undoubtedly very exclusive – restaurant. 

“That... that sounds good,” he managed to get out, his throat suddenly bone-dry.

“Thought so as well,” Jack smiled. “And afterwards...” He grinned at seeing the surprised widening of Ianto's eyes. “I have tickets for the concert.”

“You... But it's sold out for months!” Ianto exclaimed.

Jack shrugged. “I have my ways. I noticed the flyer lying next to your computer up in the Tourist Office for days on end.”

Somehow, Ianto was touched by so much attentive thoughtfulness, but he really shouldn't have been. Jack could be very attentive if he set his mind to it. 

He slipped his hand into Jack's neck, and pulled him into a long, heartfelt kiss. “I love it, thank you.” A wicked gleam shone in Ianto's eyes. “And I'm amazed that you managed to hide all this from me.”

Jack grinned smugly. “It wasn't easy, but I'm good after all.”

Chuckling, Ianto pulled Jack into another kiss, this one quickly becoming steamier by the second. Determined, Ianto dragged Jack back into bed, letting the immortal's warm weight press him into the mattress comfortingly.

“Merry Christmas, Jack,” he whispered against Jack's lips.

“Merry Christmas to you, too,” Jack replied softly before he dove in for another kiss.

** End **

**Author's Note:**

> The idea for this story was a co-op brainstorming after a couple of friends and I saw the photo John Barrowman posted on Instagram with him and Scott in bed, Scott wearing nothing and him wearing a woolen hat. Somehow, the idea popped up that it would be funny if Jack would have to wear a hat, and keep it on during sex. Since I didn't want to let him lose his hair in an accident like my friends suggested, we agreed on it turning green. From then on, the story wrote itself practically on its own^^.


End file.
